Grommet bag



sept. 2s, 196s F. BRIESKE enomm'r BAG FiledV Sept. 12, 1962 lNvENTQR. Bernard l? rzeske United States Patent O 3,208,660 GRGMMET BAG Bernard F. Brieske, Palatine, Ill., assignor, by mesue assignments, to Vision Wrap Industries, Inc., Schiller Park, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Filed Sept. 12, 1962, Ser. No. 223,218 2 Claims. (Cl. 229-53) This invention relates to containers adapted to hold various materials under a varietyof conditions. The invention is particularly directed to bags or similar containers which are formed of polyethylene and which are provided with grommets whereby' the bagscan be effectively employed for rack merchandising and for similar uses.

It is an established fact that the cost of packaging must be taken into consideration in determining profit which can be made in the merchandising of bags. It is, therefore, highly important in the packaging industry to provide bags and other containers which are economical in their manufacture. It is also important to provide vbags which are capable of retaining the items therein which do not detract from or which increase the sales' appeal ofv articles contained therein.

In the packaging industry, use has been made of polyethylene bags due to the fact that these bags arepossessed of many desirable characteristics. Specifically, polyethylene is a relativelyinexpensive material, and in most instances, has the necessary physical characteristics whereby most articles can be safely stored therein. Furthermore, the transparent nature of the polyethylene enables purchasers to view the contents, and, therefore, such bags are desirable from a sales appeal standpoint.

In many instances, it is desirable to provide bags which are suitable for rack merchandising. Specifically, merchants are interested in displaying lgoods on racks in order` to make maximum utilization `of available space and in order to locate the `goods where they can vbe easily reached by the public. Where polyethylene bags have been employed for .such rack merchandising, ,difculties have been encountered due to the fact that the polyethylene tends to t'ear once holes are punched therevin or when any metal members are, attached thereto.

bag construction which overcomes the dificulties previously encountered in the preparation of bags for rack merchandising.

yIt is al more particular object of this invention to provide a unique .grommet construction in combination with a polyethylene lbag whereby a means is provided for employing polyethylene bags for rack merchandising. It is a further object of this invention to provide a novel grommet bag construction which is extremely economical in'its manufacture, and i-t is a related object of this invention to provide a method for economically manufacturing polyethylene grommet bags.

3,208,660 Patented Sept. 28, 1965 "Ice v hereinafter and for purposes of illustration but not of limitation, specific embodiments of this invention are shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a grommet bag manufactured in `accordance with this invention,

IFIGURE 2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating one manner for producing the novel grommet bags,

lFIGURE 3 is a perspective view of a group of grommet bags as they would appear when suspended on a merchandising rack, and

'FIGURES 4 and 5 illustrate alternative forms of bag constructions and grommet designs suitable for use in accordance with this invention.

The bag construction of this invention generally comprises a body portion formed of polyethylene and a.

grommet disposed at one end thereof. The grommet is formed of a pair of planar members which are located on opposite sides of the -bag and which define an opening through the bag. The grommets are of a nature such that they can be heat sealed onto the bag.

The grommet bags of tnis invention can be formed of various commercially available types of polyethylene, including linear polyethylene and low, medium and high density polyethylene. ethylene can comprise elongate, seamless, tubular sections. Where such sections are employed, a heat seal is provided along the end of the bag 1which has the grommet adjacent thereto. In the normal course, the

package manufacturer will market a bag of this typeV with an open end whereby the persons interested in using the bags can heat seal or otherwise close off this end when the goods are inserted in the bag. -For display purposes, the grommet Jend of the bag would then bccome the top of the bag. p

Polyethylene is also commercially available in continuous sheets, and, in such instances, the polyethylene enclosures can be formed by folding sheet sections to form one closed end then heat sealing the Afolded section along its lateral edges. Again, an openl end is provided for insertion of goods and the grommet end of the bag will form the top ofthe bag after the goods have fbeen inserted and the open end closed oi.

In accordance with the procedure of this invention, a method for producing the grommet bags includes the steps of providing polyethylene material and heat sealing the material while leaving at least one end open as described. The grommet forming members are disposed on opposite sides of the bags, dies are brought into contact with these members, and thesealing of the members to the bags is effected while heat Iand pressure are applied. An opening may be formed in the grommets during the heat sealing operation or at any stage before or after this operation. It will be understood that in the appended claims, the steps referred to therein need not necessarily be carried out in the order presented. Thus, sealing along the edges of the polyethylene material could take place before, during or after attaching of `the grommet.

In a preferred form of vthis invention, the grommet members are formed of bleached kraft paper having a layer of polyethylene thereon. It has been found that laminated or extruded coats of polyethylene' on the In certain instances, the poly@ the bags is also quite simple and the layer of polyethylene thereon provides an extremely effective heat seal. Furthermore, the bleached' kraft paper grommets provide avery presentablepackage. v

Tir :accompanying drawings illustrate various forms which the instant invention may assume. FIGURE 1 illustrates a grommet bag which comprises a body portion 12 of polyethylene and which includes a grommet 14 disposed at one end; In this instance, the bag 10 has been formed from a single ply sheet of polyethylene which has been folded over at the edge 16 and heat sealed at'the lateral edges 18.

FIGURE 4 illustrates a grommet bag 20 formed from a tubular section of polyethylene. In this bag construction, the lateral edges 22 are seamless edges while a heat seal is applied at 24 to close olf one end of the bag. The grommet 26 is located adjacent this heat sealed end although it will be understood that it is also contemplated that grommets can be employed adjacent the seamless edges of the bag. In this connection, there may be instances where more than one -grommet can advantageously bev utilized. It will be noted that the outer periphery of the grommet 26 is non-circular vand all such configurations are contemplated vsince they may be desirable for practical or esthetic reasons.

FIGURES illustrates a grommet bag 28 which also is formed from a tubular section of polyethylene. In this instance, however, the yseamless edges are provided with a pleat 30'in order to increase the capacity of the bag without increasingthe lateral dimensions thereof. As in the previous instance, the grommet 32 is applied adjacent the heat seal 34 at the closed end of the bag. The grommet 32 defines an elongated opening 33 whereby it can be utilized in combination with similarly yshaped rack members. The lcenter portion 3S of the grommet 32 permits use in combination with the more conventional rod-like rack members. It will be appreciated that a large variety of designs for the planar grommets can be employed in accordance with this invention.

It will be noted that in the respective bags described, the ends 36, 38 and 40 have been left open.l The package manufacturer will ordinarily market the kbags in this conditionv so that goods may be inserted therein prior to closing olf the open ends. As shown in FIGURE 3 which illustrates the bag 10, the -grommeted end of the `'bag becomes the top of the bag when they are hung from a rack member 42.

FIGURE 2 illustrates one possible method for manufacturing grommeted bags of the type described. In this schematic illustration, a double ply sheet 44 of polyethyleneis deposited between upper and lower dies 46 and 48. Grommet forming members 50 are located on each side ofthe sheets. The dies are adapted to be heated whereby the grommet forming members can be applied to the bag under heat and pressure.

The upper die 46 is provided with a male member 52 which is adapted to press through the grommet forming members 50 and through `the sheets 44 into female cavity 54 ina die member 48. With this arrangement,

the openings defined by the grommet members and through the ybag are formed simultaneously with the heat sealing operation. As previously noted, heat sealing of the edges of the sheets 44 can be carried out before, after or during the heat sealing of the grommet members. l

In the practice of this invention, grommet bags have been formed from tubular and single ply sheets of polyethylene. 40 pound bleached kraft paper provided with 'a layer of polyethylene has been used for the grommet forming members and as previously noted, this combination provides highly satisfactory results.

The present invention also contemplates the use of various other materials which can be employed alone as the grommet forming materials or in various combina tion. Thus, it has been found that polyethylene coated metal foil or other laminated combinations having heat sealing characteristics. and including "foil, are highlyy suitably as grommets for polyethylene bags. Furthermore,

it is contemplated that .combinations of various papers, l metal foils or the like selected from the following list could lbe provided with extrusion coatings or laminations to provide heat sealing characteristics. It is also contemplated that materials in the following list possessed of heat sealing characteristics could be employed alone for the intended purposes.

Cellulose acetate Natural kraft I Vegetable parchment As indicated above, the grommet bags of this invention and, in particular, the kraft paper-polyethylene grommet bag described, are characterized by many advantageous features. Lower cost inthe acquisition of materials, in the manufacturing stages, and in equipment investment are among these features. The manufae turing has been found to be extremely vtrouble freeu and labor costs are accordingly materially reduced.

In addition to the many advantages in the production of the bags, these bags are considered highly desirable from a merchandising standpoint. The grommet bags of this invention are entirely adequate insofar as strength is concerned for use on display racks. Furthermore, the manufacturing procedures in no way damage the polyethylene body of the bags and in no Way detract from the other advantageous features of polyethylene bags. The use of polyethylene bags presents a further advantage since written material can be disposed thereon for example as shown at 56 in FIGURE 3. The use of this material further adds to the attractive nature of these bags.

It will be understood that various modifications may be made in the above described grommet bag and the methods for its manufacture which modifications provide the characteristics of this invention without departing from the spirit thereof particularly as defined in the following claims.

That which is claimed is;

l. A grommet bag comprising a body portion formed of polyethylene, said bag being closed at one end and along its sides and being open at its other end, a pair of grommets disposed inwardly of said closed end, said grommets comprising opposed annular rings defining central openings, a polyethylene coatingon the inner surface of each of said rings whereby the rings are heat sealed to said bag, each of said rings having its interior surface lying at against the exterior surface of .said bag with said rings being entirely out of contact with each other, and with the respective polyethylene portions of the bag underlying the rings being heat sealed together, an opening through said bag communicating with the openings in said annular rings, said closed end of the bag including said grommets comprising the top end of the bag after material is inserted in the bag and after said other end is heat sealed together.

5 2. A lgrommet ba-g comprising a body portion formed of a heat sealable material, said bag being closed at one end and along its sides and being open at its other end, a pair of grommets disposed inwardly of said closed end, said grommets comprising a pair of opposed rings deiining central openings and heat sealed to said bag, each of said rings having its interior surface lying Eat against the exterior surface of said bag with said rings Vbeing entirely out of contact with each other, and with the respective portions of the bag underlying the rings being heat sealed together, an opening through said bag communicating with the openings in said rings, said closed end of the bag including said grommets comprising the top end of the bag after material is inserted in the bag and after said other end is heat sealed together.

6 References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 11/40 Waters 93-35 12/41 Knueter 93-35 3/44 Kahn Q. 229-74 9/54 IFrancois 206-45 3/59 Lingenfelter et al. 150-3 2/61 Canno 229-55 3/62 Meister 229-62 12/62 Kom 229-62 Y FRANKLIN T. GARRE'IT, Primary Examiner. 15 GEORGE O. RALSTON, Examiner. 

1. A GROMMET BAG COMPRISING A BODY PORTION FORMED OF POLYETHYLENE, SAID BAG BEING CLOSED AT ONE END AND ALONG ITS SIDES AND BEING OPEN AT ITS OTHER END, A PAIR OF GROMMETS DISPOSED INWARDLY OF SAID CLOSED END, SAID GROMMETS COMPRISING OPPOSED ANNULAR RINGS DEFINING CENTRAL OPENINGS, A POLYETHYLENE COATING ON THE INNER SURFACE OF EACH OF SAID RINGS WHEREBY THE RINGS ARE HEAT SEALED TO SAID BAG, EACH OF SAID RINGS HAVING ITS INTERIOR SURFACE LYING FLAT AGAINST THE EXTERIOR SURFACE OF SAID 